Key holder



' p 1967 M. c. SHELTON 3,315,505

KEY HOLDER Filed May 25, 1965 2 Sheets-$heet l I I /4 L 1 INVENTOR. MAL COLM C SHEL TON ATTORNEY April 1957 M. c. SHELTON 3,31

KEY HOLDER Filed May 25, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 32 3/ Fig. 7

32 IN VEN TOR MALCOLM C. SHELTON Fig. 8 BY .ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,315,505 KEY HOLDER Malcolm C. Shelton, 2902 E. Russell Road, Kansas City, Mo. 64117 Filed May 25, 1965, Ser. No. 458,534 2 Claims. (Cl. 70-456) My invention relates to key holders and more particularly to a key holder with which the keys can be readily assembled and which is convenient to use and compact in construction.

My key holder comprise-s an elongated body portion which is provided with slots providing passages receiving the keys, the keys being slidably mounted with respect to the body portion and guided in their movements with respect to the body portion so that the keys can be either withdrawn within the body portion or projected from the body portion into position for use.

My invention further comprises means for operating the same comprising a headed member that is adapted to be engaged with the fingers of the operator to move the key with which it is associated back and forth with respect to the body portion, which headed member is provided with a shank portion, that engages in the ordinary opening provided in the head portion of a key to connect the headed member with the key for movement of the key with the headed member.

One of the purposes of my invention is to provide means for mounting such a headed member so that it will be guided in its movements with respect to the body portion of the key holder and which will be capable of being easily assembled with the key holder and the key. In order to accomplish this the headed member is provided with a pair of heads, one of which is slotted for receiving a coin, or screw driver, or similar bladed member, for turning the same and the other of which is provided with a rectangular head portion, that is mounted in a groove in the body portion of the holder so as to be held against turning with respect to the slotted head portion, so that the two headed portions, which are screw-threadedly connected together, can be readily assembled and readily disengaged.

More specifically my invention comprises a key holder that has such an elongated body portion which is fiat faced and which is provided with a plurality of wide, open ended, longitudinally extending key receiving passages, each of which has a wall having a slot therein, which is provided with inner and outer end walls, and which is adapted to receive the shank portion of the headed member, so as to limit the sliding movements thereof and guide the same with respect to the body portion of the key holder. The grooves above referred to are provided in the Walls of the key receiving passages, that are opposite the walls thereof that have the slots therein for receiving the shank portions of the headed member.

It is a further purpose of my invention to provide a key holder of the above referred to character which is provided with means for restricting each of the slots adjacent but spaced from the inner end thereof, so as to hold the keys in retracted position within the body portion of the holder when this is desired, projection of the keys, to the extent required to operate the same, from the body portion requiring sufficient force to pass the restriction in the passage.

My improved key holder may be made either of metal or a plastic material, which has sufiicient flexibility and compressibility, that a restriction can be provided in the slot for the shank portion of the headed memher and the headed member can be forced past said restriction, by distorting the wall of the restriction sufliciently to force the headed member past the same.

It is a further purpose of my invention to provide a key holder with a metal body portion, that is provided with slots for receiving the shanks of the headed members, with a compressible member that projects slightly into each of the slots to restrict the same so that the shank portion of the headed member carrying the key has to be forced past the same.

It is still a further purpose of my invention to provide a key holder with a yieldable molded plastic body portion, that is provided with aligned slots for receiving the shanks of the headed members, each of which is provided with a restricted portion by having inwardly directed projections on the walls of the slots, which aligned slots are connected -by a narrow slot so as to increase the yieldability of the material to permit sufficient spread of the walls of the slots at the restrictions therein that the keys can be forced past the inwardly directed projections on the Walls of the slots.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will appear as the description of the drawings proceeds. I desire to have it understood, however, that I do not intend to limit myself to the particular details shown or described except as defined in the claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of one form of the key holder, partly broken away.

FIG. 2 is an edge elevation thereof.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of FIG. 2 on an enlarged scale.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary enlarged sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a plan view, partly broken away, of a modification.

FIG. 6 is an edge elevation of the form of the invention shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a section taken on the line 77 of FIG. 6, On an enlarged scale, and

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary section on an enlarged scale, taken on the line 88 of FIG. 5.

Referring in detail to the drawings, in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive, is shown a key holder that is provided with an elongated metal body portion 10, which has rounded ends 11 and which is provided with a plurality of slots 12 which run lengthwise thereof and extend through the rounded ends thereof forming key receiving passages therein. A pair of outer walls 13 and an intermediate wall 14 form the opposed walls of the passages 12. The intermediate wall 14 is reduced as shown in FIG. 3 at 15 to provide a pair of wide, shallow, flat bottomed grooves 16 in the opposite faces thereof and the walls 13 are provided with narrow slots 17 therein. The side walls 18 of the key holder terminate short of the ends thereof, the rounded ends 11 having the wide slots forming passages 12 projecting therethrough. The outer faces 19 of the walls 13 are flat, as are the side walls 18, but the corners between said walls are preferably rounded as shown in the drawings. The grooves 16 are of uniform width and have straight parallel side edges, so that each of the grooves forms a guideway in one of the walls of each of the slots or passages 12, that is of uniform width. The grooves 16 have open ends through the open ends of the key receiving passages or slots 12. The slots or passages 12 are of a width to closely receive the head portions of the keys, such as the head portion 20 of the key 21.

Mounted in recesses 22 in the body portion 10 are disklike members 23 which are flush with the outer flat surfaces of the wall portions 13, but project slightly into the slots 17 as will be obvious from FIGS. 1, 3 and 4. Said disk-like members 23 are compressible material, such as rubber.

The headed members are provided with shank portions .36 in each slot spaced from the inner end thereof.

that engage in the openings 24 in the keys 21. In FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive, the headed members are shown as comprising a tubular shank portion 25, which is provided with a head 26 that is provided with a slot 27 for engagement of a tool or coin therewith, the tubular shank portion being internally threaded. Cooperating with this headed member is a member' that has an externally screw-threaded portion 28 that is adapted to be screwthreadedly engaged with the internally threaded tubular shank portion 25 and which is provided with a thin, fiat, square head 29 that is adaptedto fit in the groove 16 for guided sliding movement with respect to said groove.

The parts are so proportioned that the thickness of the key will take up sutficient space between the under side of the outer wall 13 and the top face of the fiat square head 29 that when the parts are screwed together so that the shank portion 25 is drawn down onto the flat face of the head 29 the head 26 will be freely. slidably engaged with the flat face of the wall 13, and the head 29 will be positioned in the groove 16 and can not be removed therefrom while the parts are in assembled position.

The walls 13 are spaced from the bottom of the groove 16 so that the shank portion 28 of the square headed -member that is to be placed into the groove 16 can be forced into such a position that the square head 29 will be in the groove 16 when the shank 28 is aligned with the slot 17. If a key 21 is assembled therewith before this is done the key will be in position between the wall 13 and the wall 14 and the shank portion 28 of the square headed member will be aligned with the slot 17 so that the cooperating headed member having the tubular shank by engagement of a suitable blade or coin wit-h the slot 27. This is very easily done because the screw-threaded shank portion 28 will be held against any rotating movement by the square head 29. 5 After the key has'been assembled with the body portion in this manner it can be pushed back into the body portion until the tubular shank portion 25 has been pushed past the yieldable member 23 whereupon the key will beheld in retracted position within the body portion due to the restriction provided in the slot 17 by means of the yieldable slotrestricting member. 23.

In FIG. 1, one of the keys is shown in its projected position ready for use in a lock in full lines, and in FIG. 4 a portion of such a key is also shown in fulllines,

' while in FIG. 2, one of the keys is shown in projected.

position. in full lines and the other three keys are shown in dotted lines as in projected position, the keys at the left of FIG. 2 being partly broken away.

.In theform of the invention shown in FIGS. .5 to 8 i inclusive, the body portion 10 is made in a very similar manner to thatshown for the body portion 10 in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive. The same reference numerals are used .for corresponding parts in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive, and

in FIGS. 5 to 8 inclusive. The body portion 10' is preferably made of a molded plastic material that has 7 sufficient flexibility that the headed members carrying the keys can be assembled therewith in a similar manner to that described in connection with FIGS. 1 to 4 in-' clusive, and which will distort sufiiciently that a reduced i portion can be molded in the slot in the body portion same as previously described in connection with the body portion 10, having the key passages or slots 12 therein.

The headed members, that are used for mounting the keys in the body portion for movement into the same and to a position projecting from the'same, are made somewhat differently from the headed members shown in FIGS.

1 to 4 inclusive. The members having the heads 31 that are provided with slots 32 therein are provided with externally threaded shank portions 33, which are received within the tubular internally screw-threaded shank portions 34 provided on the headed members that have the 5 rectangular heads 35 thereon, the heads 35 being mounted in the slots 16 and being preferably square. The headed member having the externally screw-threaded shank portion 33 is preferably a screw-threaded headed member that can be purchased or made in an ordinary screw. machine without any special tools, such as might be required for headed members that have a tubular portion thereon that is internally screw-threaded. The tubular shank portion 34 is of such length that it engages the under side of the head 31 when the head 31 is slightly spaced from the top wall 13.

The operation of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 5 f .to 8 inclusive, is substantially the same as that of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive. The principal differences between this form of the invention and that shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive, are the inward projections 30 provided on the walls of the slots 17', the slots 37 and the construction of theheaded membersthat carry the keys.

What, I claim is:

1. A key holder having an elongated, flat faced'body portion of yieldable plastic material provided with a pluportion 25 can be engaged therewith'and tightened down rality of wide, open ended, longitudinally extending key I receiving passages, each of said passages having :a wall having straight, longitudinal slots therein shorter than a.

said passage, said slots being in longitudinally aligned pairs with the inner ends thereof in longitudinally spaced relation to each other and the outer ends thereof inwardly spaced from the open ends of said passage, said inner ends of said slots being connected by means of a slot of reduced width extending between said pair of slots in alignment therewith, a wall opposite said slotted wall having a longitudinally extending groove therein opposite said slots coextensive with said passage, a key engaging V retaining member mounted in'each of said slots, said retaining members each comprising a pair of headed screw-threadedly connected members, the head of one 1 of said members engaging a fiat face of said bodyportion and being slotted and the head ofthe other of said screw-threadedly connected members being rectangular and slidably engaging in said groove, each of said retaining members having a tubular shank mounted in one of said paired slots, and opposed projections on the side, 'wall. portions of said slots adjacent but spaced lon'gi-.

tudinally from the inner ends of said slots, said projec tions extending toward each other in transversely spaced relation to provide a restriction in each of the slots nar- 5 rower than the diameter of said shank, said slot of reduced width being disposed to permit said slots to spread upon pressure of a retaining member against said opposed PTO? jections and permit movement of said retaining member l I past said projections.

2. A'key holder having anelongated, flat faced-body portion provided with a plurality of wide; openended,

longitudinally extending key receiving passages, each of said passages having a wallhaving straight, longitudinal slots therein shorter than said passage, said slots' beingin longitudinally aligned pairs with the inner ends thereof in longitudinally spaced relation to eachother and the outer ends thereof inwardly spaced from the open ends of said passage, a wall opposite said slotted wall having a longitudinally extending groove therein opposite said slots co-extensive with said passage, a key engaging retaining member mounted in each of said slots, said retaining members each comprising a pair of headed screwthreadedly connected members, the head of one of said i members engaging a flat face of said body portion and being slotted and the head of the other of said screwthreadedly connected members 'being rectangular and slidably engaging in said groove, each of said retaining members having a tubular shank mounted in one of said paired slots, said body portion having a recess therein laterally adjacent each of said slots, said recess being adjacent the inner end of said slot but spaced longitudinally from said inner end of said slot, said recess extending through one side wall of said slot and a compressible member mounted in said recess and having a convexly curved yieldable portion projecting into said slot to provide a restriction in said slot narrower than the diameter of said shank and yieldable upon pressure of a retaining member thereagainst.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Franke 15040 Nelson 70456 Brugnoni 70456 Leff 70456 Segal 150-4O Hudson 70456 Taylor 70456 EDWARD C. ALLEN, Primary Examiner. P. TEITELBAUM, Assistant Examiner. 

2. A KEY HOLDER HAVING AN ELONGATED, FLAT FACED BODY PORTION PROVIDED WITH A PLURALITY OF WIDE, OPEN ENDED, LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING KEY RECEIVING PASSAGES, EACH OF SAID PASSAGES HAVING A WALL HAVING STRAIGHT, LONGITUDINAL SLOTS THEREIN SHORTER THAN SAID PASSAGE, SAID SLOTS BEING IN LONGITUDINALLY ALIGNED PAIRS WITH THE INNER ENDS THEREOF IN LONGITUDINALLY SPACED RELATION TO EACH OTHER AND THE OUTER ENDS THEREOF INWARDLY SPACED FROM THE OPEN ENDS OF SAID PASSAGE, A WALL OPPOSITE SAID SLOTTED WALL HAVING A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING GROOVE THEREIN OPPOSITE SAID SLOTS CO-EXTENSIVE WITH SAID PASSAGE, A KEY ENGAGING RETAINING MEMBER MOUNTED IN EACH OF SAID SLOTS, SAID RETAINING MEMBERS EACH COMPRISING A PAIR OF HEADED SCREWTHREADEDLY CONNECTED MEMBERS, THE HEAD OF ONE OF SAID MEMBERS ENGAGING A FLAT FACE FO SAID BODY PORTION AND BEING SLOTTED AND THE HEAD OF THE OTHER OF SAID SCREWTHREADEDLY CONNECTED MEMBERS BEING RECTANGULAR AND SLIDABLY ENGAGING IN SAID GROOVE, EACH OF SAID RETAINING MEMBERS HAVING A TUBULAR SHANK MOUNTED IN ONE OF SAID PAIRED SLOTS, SAID BODY PORTION HAVING A RECESS THEREIN LATERALLY ADJACENT EACH OF SAID SLOTS, SAID RECESS BEING ADJACENT THE INNER END OF SAID SLOT BUT SPACED LONGITUDINALLY FROM SAID INNER END OF SAID SLOT, SAID RECESS EXTENDING THROUGH ONE SIDE WALL OF SAID SLOT AND A COMPRESSIBLE MEMBER MOUNTED IN SAID RECESS AND HAVING A CONVEXLY CURVED YIELDABLE PORTION PROJECTING INTO SAID SLOT TO PROVIDE A RESTRICTION IN SAID SLOT NARROWER THAN THAN DIAMETER OF SAID SHANK AND YIELDABLE UPON PRESSURE OF A RETAINING MEMBER THEREAGAINST. 